The Guilty One
by whispered love 13
Summary: The hazy memory of a past life. The forgotten smells of a village. And a promise: return to Konoha with the young Uchiha. How can she go back if she doesn't remember? How can she face his murderer? ItaSasuSaku T for lang and sex in later chapters R&R


A/N: Alright here I go:

Hello everyone! I haven't done a SasuSaku story in a while, so what is better than a SasuSaku fic other than an ItaSasuSaku fic. I always loved Itachi's character and the sudden twist after the big fight with Sasuke.

This story will be a bit AU, seeing as how the story unfolds overtime to explain how AU it might possibly be. Simply go with the flow guys and girls. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> Naruto and characters are property of Masashi Kishimoto. Song lyrics are from Joshua Radin's What if You.

**Chapter 1: What if You**

_~I wonder if you'd miss me~_

_~when I'm gone~_

_~It's come to this release me~_

_~I'll leave before the dawn~_

She wasn't prepared. Nothing kept her feelings in order as the man in front of her began explaining what he expected of her. She felt her lip begin to quiver, her fists clenched tightly. She found it miraculous to stand up; worried that her body was going to crumble. She needed to sit down but found her legs unresponsive, cemented towards the floor below her. He was agile, moving from one spot to the other. Her gaze followed in an attempt to get his attention through sight alone.

She wasn't prepared to say goodbye.

He taught her everything that she knows. How to adjust chakra with precision. Fought her to improve her taijutsu. He instructed her to use her mind to combat genjutsu. He perfected her ninjutsu and reinstructed her medic abilities. He taught her to be cautious. He helped her progress what she remembered. He gave her an identity after she didn't remember who she was. What would she have if he were gone?

"There's a crow," Itachi said as her eyes fell towards the floor. She couldn't bear to look at him, even though it would be the last time she would see him. He coughed horrendously before explaining what the crow signified. That's what made her head turn. He was hunched over; bringing his hand up to his mouth to muffle the sounds while the other clutched the wooden table. His hand had a difficult time from letting the red ooze seeping out.

Her legs gave her permission to approach him with her white linen napkin. The one that he gave her. She wiped off the blood from his mouth as she turned his hand around to clean what she could from his palm. His palms were white like the rest of his skin, beautiful white marble skin, tainted with crimson droplets. She wanted to make him gain the appearance that he wasn't dying. That he wasn't going to his death.

"The crow will disappear when he finishes it."

"Please don't go Itachi-kun," Sakura pleaded.

"Sakura, I need you to do this for me."

Sakura lowered her head without it straining. Itachi lifted it back up to face him. She saw the crimson eyes, hardened and defensive. To her, they were somber and nullifying, much like the day that he found her in the forest, her mind on the verge of insanity. She didn't know where she was, what she was doing there. She didn't even know him. The only thing she had was a kunai, some shuriken, and a headband with a leaf symbol. The way he looked back then was nothing to how he appeared now. His cheeks were sunken, his strength diminished. It was hard watching him suffer, just so he can fight his younger brother.

He was not going to last the fight with the young Uchiha. She knew that his time was not long in this world.

Yet every breath she took she wished could replenish him. Wished that it were her going to fight, instead of him.

It was not so. She didn't know how to keep him alive, when all he kept telling her about was his death. He had been planning with her all this time. That was why her knowledge of medicine was so essential. What she remembered of it. She had been doing everything to keep him alive, to have him die by the hands of the last remaining Uchiha.

"Promise me you'll take him back," Itachi said.

"I don't even know how to get back. I told you, this is my home. Here with you and the Akatsuki," Sakura explained. Any lie to keep him close, but Itachi knew better. He never settled a session unless she was tired. He always instructed her to the point of perfection. Each day he was impressed with her skills to know she was able to accomplish what he can't. That's why he trusted her to do this for him, and excuses were not to be tolerated. He reached for her hand as she helped him sit down on his bed. The springs cried as she implanted herself beside him.

"There's the forest out in the west with vines and algae," he pointed at the wall to his left. Sakura's eyes followed the flow of his fingers, paying attention to every little detail, every direction, every detour. His voice kept her afloat. Was this going to be the last time that she was going to listen to his instruction? The last time his voice would echo through her eardrums, giving her guidance?

"Just remember, when the crow disappears, you should move. I'll try holding on as much as possible, until the very end."

She didn't feel anything as he said that. She didn't feel the salty stream cascading down her cheeks. She didn't feel his hand brush them away. She simply couldn't feel anything as he said that it was going to be the end.

It couldn't be the end.

Because then she would end.

"I can't let you do this," she said as steady as her voice could allow. "We can find another way to clear his name. You," she looked at him. The tears slowly began to flow anew, "You don't have to…"

"Sakura," Itachi touched her face again. She brought her hands up to her face, pressing his hands closer, trying to merge his hands with her. The barrier of their skin proved to be incompatible. "He needs this to become normal. To return. To feel avenged. But only you can keep him from knowing the truth."

"You are a good person. He can know about your genuine truth."

"This truth," Itachi said, "Will destroy him and others. He believes me to be evil. He knows me as the murderer of the Uchiha clan. Let him believe it to be so." He rose up. Sakura remained where she was sitting. "Don't let him know the truth."

"Don't leave yet," she said, almost in a desperate plea. She remained as composed as possible, but her voice had betrayed her. Itachi breathed slowly, and she knew that she was waiting for him to decide whether or not he would leave her, or take pity on her. She didn't want to spend the night alone, so she pushed on. "Stay with me the night."

His shoulders depleted as his gaze turned towards his young protégé. She sighed deeply when she saw him turn away from the door. When he sat beside her, she smiled and began to weep again as he grabbed her hand. She stopped crying as he lay down beside her. She realized that she didn't need anything but him. He leaned towards her and placed a kiss on her forehead, the first and only time she saw him show a romantic gesture.

"I'm counting on you Sakura," he whispered before she felt her eyelids close. But not before she saw him one last time.

In the morning, she secretly hoped to have his crimson eyes staring back at her. To see the dark raven tendrils in a messy embrace with the white virgin pillow. Instead, she saw the white sheets, the pillow perfectly arranged, untouched. Almost like his ghost lay down beside her, not his real person.

But it couldn't have been genjutsu, because she felt his steady breathing through the night. She felt his kiss tenderly imprint on her forehead before she went to sleep. He was just pure perfection in her eyes. Always wanting to do everything in a perfect manner. She knew that if she saw him disperse she would do the same thing that she did last night: coerce him to stay. Trying to convince him to remain by her side.

This was the better choice, seeing an empty bed.

Her body inched up with the support coming from her arms, ultimately resting on her knees as she lowered her head down to hide the tears within the sheets. She remained hopeful with the idea that she would see him again. That it was not going to be the end of Itachi Uchiha. He would come out of this triumphant, like every other battle he would fight. She composed herself after a while, and noticed the black crow in the corner staring back at her. The same crow Itachi told her to watch out for. Then the terror of him failing flooded Sakura's veins to the point where she froze in her bed. The crow was the only thing moving as its head tilted from side to side. But it wasn't squawking. She had to realize that this was going to happen. Itachi was going to fall prey to Sasuke Uchiha. She was going to have to bring him back to Konohagakure and reinstate him as a hero in the village he defected from over seven years ago. She was going to return home after three years of disappearing.

But most importantly, she was going to keep him safe from the hands of Madara.

She brought her hands up to wipe away the tears and sleep, and remained alert as she waited for the crow to disappear. She was expected not to fail.

She would perform his final will without fail.

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><p>AN: Okay, a good little teaser for more to come. Just so you know reviews are what drive me to write more and write faster, just to let you know. ;)


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